Do You See What I See....

Quote for the Day:

"Do you see what I see, way up in the sky, little lamb?"

~Do You Hear What I Hear, lyrics

This is what I saw this past weekend...

...that's right...that white along the left side of the picture is the batting at the top of the Sunflower Quilt, which means that I am coming to the end of this quilt and only have about 14" left to quilt on it!    :)  I'm moving right along on it and should have it done and out of the frame before company comes for Christmas!  

That's a good thing!  Because then the roller part of the frame gets turned straight up and down and the whole frame slides up against the wall and out of the way...making room for the bed we put up for guests!   I can do this with a quilt on the frame, but it is easier to do, and you don't "tweak" the quilt top, if there is no quilt on the frame at the time.

Last July, when I went to the estate auction of the quilter and got a great haul, I ended up finding 5-6 pair of scissors among the items I bought.  Two of the pairs were Ginghers, which is an expensive brand and highly treasured by quilters and sewers.   This is one of those pair of Ginghers scissors...

Aren't they adorable?  They are a 4" pair of embroidery scissors.  They are razor sharp and have a nice weight to them, so you can tell right away that they are made with quality materials.  :)  I love the "fabric" design on the handles.

In fact, I like that fabric design so well, that lo and behold...I have some that is almost identical to it in this quilt! 
  

When I lay my scissors on that particular fabric, they become "camouflaged".  The design is almost identical but the scissors are slightly more peachy whereas the fabric is pink.  Still...I thought the coincidence was humorous!  :)

Okay, so it's the simple things that make me smile!  :)  As long as we keep smiling, I guess that's the important part!  :)


Loretta

Still Kickin'...

Quote for the Day:

"Insanity does not run in my family.

It strolls through, takes it's time,

and gets to know everyone personally."

~author unknown

I hope you enjoyed the above quote!  In know it brought a HUGE smile to my face when I found it!   :D

I thought maybe you, my readers, had thought I had fallen off the face of the earth!  I thought I'd better let you know that I hadn't and that I'm still here kickin'.  LOL 


Wanted to share the progress I've made on the Sunflower Quilt that I'm currently hand quilting.  I'm just 6" away from the half-way point!  :D  You can see the huge star that marks the center of the quilt in this picture...

I'm really moving along quite fast on this quilt and am really loving the way it is turning out!  

The motif on this particular block is my favorite...

I'm not trying for "teensy" stitches anymore as I found that I actually like to see a little of the stitch, especially because I'm using variegated thread on this quilt.  Once the quilt is washed and "crinkles" up, the stitches will be less visible than they are now (for you purists out there who think that stitches should be too tiny to be seen!  LOL)



I have two book reviews for you, today.  BTW...I am love, love, loving my new Nook!  I'm very happy that I treated myself to one!  :)


First book:  "The Bag Lady Papers:  The Priceless Experience of Losing it All" by Alexandra Penney.   I listened to this as an audiobook on my MP3 player and thought it was very intriguing.    

• Synopsis:  A victim of Bernie Madoff's ponzi scheme, mom and former Self magazine editor-in-chief Penney (How to Make Love to a Man), hyperventilates her way through this intriguing memoir of putting it back together. Finding herself almost entirely without money, Penney faces the unexpected need to retrench with a daunting sense of paranoia; brought up by aloof parents, Penney lived for a long time with a chronic, seemingly irrational fear of becoming a destitute bag lady. As a "Person of Reduced Circumstances", Penney bolsters herself with chin-up wisdom ("unless you've been mummified, you have choices and alternatives") and bravely vows to apply her own nail polish while eulogizing her days as an expensively-dressed editrix at Conde Nast. While she ponders lists labeled "money can still buy" and "money can't buy," a collection of well-heeled and influential friends encourage her with quotes from Emerson, invitations to the Caribbean and tax advice. With considerations like, "Is it worse to have had money and lost it? Or is it worse to never have had money at all?" Penney can be an (admittedly) unsympathetic protagonist, but her struggle is genuine, her charm expansive and surprising, and her strength winning. 

My second book is "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" by Amy Chua.  (This is the first book I read on my Nook!)   Very interesting book!   I find that I don't have to agree 100%...or even 10%...with the author to still find their books interesting.  In fact, I like to read to find out about things that I don't know anything about.

• Synopsis:  Chua imparts the secret behind the stereotypical Asian child's phenomenal success: the Chinese mother. Chua promotes what has traditionally worked very well in raising children: strict, Old World, uncompromising values--and the parents don't have to be Chinese. What they are, however, are different from what she sees as indulgent and permissive Western parents: stressing academic performance above all, never accepting a mediocre grade, insisting on drilling and practice, and instilling respect for authority. Chua and her Jewish husband (both are professors at Yale Law) raised two girls, and her account of their formative years achieving amazing success in school and music performance proves both a model and a cautionary tale. Sophia, the eldest, was dutiful and diligent, leapfrogging over her peers in academics and as a Suzuki piano student; Lulu was also gifted, but defiant, who excelled at the violin but eventually balked at her mother's pushing. Chua's efforts "not to raise a soft, entitled child" will strike American readers as a little scary--removing her children from school for extra practice, public shaming and insults, equating Western parenting with failure--but the results, she claims somewhat glibly in this frank, unapologetic report card, "were hard to quarrel with."

I love reading!  The love of books and reading was instilled into me at a young age, probably mainly by mother who was an avid reader and would let me read the Agatha Christie novels she would check out of the library to read!  She never read anything that she wouldn't want her children to see, so if she brought it home, I usually read it, too!   Eugenia Price, Corrie Ten Boom, Agatha Christie...to name a few of the authors she read.  

I got my love of learning from my dad.  In the evenings if he wasn't busy doing something else, he'd sit and read either the Bible or an encyclopedia!  Yes!  An encyclopedia!  He was always trying to learn and what better place to do it than a book filled with all kinds of information!  (We had an old set of encyclopedias that were probably from the '50's!   But this was in the 70's, before scientific advances  started exploding at the speed of light, so the information wasn't really out of date.)

A book can educate you, move you emotionally, or take you places you probably will never go yourself!  So pick up a book today and expose yourself to all kinds of new adventures!!

Loretta

Updates On Various Things In My Life...

Quote for the Day:

 "He who laughs last probably didn't get the joke."
---Unknown 

Well, well, well...where to start...
There really is no "beginning" and "end" to this post...just little tidbits of things going on in my life right now...

Let's start with this one...

My niece is getting married in just under THREE WEEKS and while I was off of work this past week on a staycation, one of the things that was on my "to do" list was to go shopping for an outfit to wear to the wedding.  Most of my wardrobe is made up of casual clothes since I really don't go anywhere that requires more than that.  Plus, my weight has fluctuated so much over the last several years, that it seems like every season I have to buy a completely new wardrobe.  :(  Not good.  :(  I have the two dresses that I wore at my own kids' weddings, but they seem a little more "fancy" than I want to wear to this wedding.  And, besides, wearing a dress would require struggling with pantyhose and wearing heels...both of which I'm not sure my back could handle right now.  I was thinking more of black slacks with a nice blouse or blouse/jacket combo.

Yesterday, I was at Kohl's to return an item and decided to try on 2 blouses that I saw.  One looked great on me, except that I was between sizes in it...one size was too tight in the sleeves and the next size up looked like I was swimming in it.  :(  The second blouse looked good on the hanger, but terrible, with a capital "T" on me!  Ugh!!  

This morning the light bulb came on in my head that both the dresses that I had worn to my kids' weddings had dressy jackets with them!  I could pair one of the jackets with a white blouse and black pants.  However, after trying both jackets on, I decided that I didn't like the way they fit now.  :(  

BUT...and that is a very big BUT...I did spy a red rayon shirt/blouse in my closet that still fit.  Paired with a white, lacy shell and black pants that I already have and voila...I have me an outfit for the wedding!  AND at no additional cost!  Double win!  :)

Bring on the WEDDING!!!   This old lady is READY to par-tay!!!  :D


Next item up for discussion...
Have you ever thought about doing something, planned for it, dreamed of it, wanted it...only to be REALLY disappointed with the outcome when you finally did it? 

Ever wonder why I haven't yet posted pictures of the finished, bound and washed whole-cloth quilt even though it's been done for a few weeks now???  Well...I'm just really disappointed in what it looks like.

Yeah...that's it.

Since washing out the blue markings basically, it looks like one big blob of white.  :(  The center medallion doesn't show up AT ALL!  :(  I'm really disappointed in it.  I really should have done the quilting in a colored or variegated thread so the design would show up better.

I've been so disappointed in this quilt, that I haven't even put it on our bed to use.  I've had it folded up on a quilt rack with the BACK side showing.  

At least the back has something interesting to look at.  I really love the black and white toile fabric.

Anyway...so much for that quilt.  I spent 9 months hand quilting it only to be disappointed in the outcome.  However, I did learn a valuable lesson...I actually LIKE to see the stitching in my quilts!  In the past I have done everything I could to make my stitches virtually invisible.  But no more!  I want to see the stitching and the design!

Based on that nugget of information, I am using a variegated thread on my current quilt...and here are some close-ups of that stitching...

I'm really liking the way this quilt is turning out!  I loved the top before I started the hand quilting, and I'm REALLY liking the hand quilting on this one!  I hope the recipient loves it as much as I do!  :)   Also, because the stitching is not as dense as the whole-cloth quilt was, this one is moving right along!  :)  YAY!  I love it when it goes quickly! 


Okay...on to the next item of business...
Andy & I *did* get back to the kitchen renovation... at least a little bit this weekend.  We got some more beadboard paneling cut and ready to attach to the wall.  (It didn't actually get "attached" yet, but at least it is cut and ready!  LOL)  And we started putting the hardware on the cabinets that are already installed. 

Let me be perfectly clear here...this has been no easy feat!!!  It is a true pain in the you-know-where trying to get these pulls installed.  The drill bit that came with the positioning guide is too small...as is all the others we tried using.  Except for one...which is the right size, but chews up the wood horribly so we can't use it.  Instead, we have to use the next size smaller and work it around till, hopefully, we have made the hole large enough for the pulls, but not so big that they show around the pull.  :(   Why, oh why, can't ANYTHING be easy?

But...we have two attached so far, and hopefully, can get the last two pulls attached and then the knobs on the door fronts.  The knobs should go much easier since they don't sit down inside the wood like the pulls do.  Keep your fingers crossed for us on that one...LOL.


Now...the final item of discussion for today...my couponing this week...


Walgreen's...

I got $35.17 worth of product, paid $13.07 out-of-pocket, got $15 back in Register Rewards, making this a $1.83 moneymaker for me!

Rite Aid...

I got $27.14 worth of product, paid $2.13 out-of-pocket, got $10.38 back in +Up Rewards, making this a $8.25 moneymaker for me!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!  Please leave me a comment to let me know you were here!  I appreciate each and every one of my visitors!

Loretta

The RSVP...Schrock-style...

Quote for the Day:

"Our childhood is what we spend the rest of our lives overcoming."
---Amy Bennett 

I come from a large, loud, boisterous family...well, at least I thought I did till I met my husband's family!  LOL  You see...there are six siblings in my family and each one of us thinks we are right...about everything.   (I can see our spouses nodding their heads "yes" even as I type this...LOL)  THEN I met Andy's family...there are thirteen kids in his family...yes, you read that right...THIRTEEN... and they all think they are right...about everything!  And they're loud, too, btw.

But I stand by my original statement that our family is loud and boisterous when we get together.  And get together we shall come October when most of us will attend our niece's wedding.  :)

My niece is very creative and made all her wedding invitations...

...and her RSVP cards...

Well...I thought the RSVP card was very cute and different than anything I'd ever seen before, so I couldn't resist having a bit of fun with it..."Schrock" style...

When the bride-to-be puts on the information sheet that she sends out in her invitations that there is a thrift store by the motel and another one close-by, that says something about the family, right???  LOL  Hell, I'd show up for the wedding just to go to the thrift store!!  Just kidding, Kristin...I'm really coming to see you get married.  *wink wink*.  But it was very thoughtful of you to have the reception near a thrift store!  That's how you know we're related!    :D  Gotta love that girl!!!   :)

Also...the Schrocks do love to eat, so I thought about putting a mark by all four meal options, but I didn't because I know they need the information to make plans with the caterer, so I refrained.

Kristin...we're looking forward to being there with you for your big day!  :)


Remember Lady, my side-kick that follows me everywhere???

Poor Lady...she's twelve years old and has never had fleas before in her life.  But this summer, we've been battling them since the beginning of July.  We've always used Frontline Plus, and up till now it has been very effective.  However, after much struggling to rid her of the fleas, I did some research online and many people have posted on various sites that after years of use, it seems to stop working.  There is speculation that the fleas become immune to it or that Frontline has changed the formula.  But whatever the reason, I'm D-O-N-E!  

The vet has suggested a new product called Trifexis so today I went and picked some up and she has had her first dose.  They also recommended a product to spray on the carpet, bedding, etc., to kill the fleas.  Here's hoping it all works.  Poor baby...she doesn't need this aggravation in her senior years.  :(


Last night I put the final quilting stitches into the whole-cloth quilt that I started last November.  :) 

Forgive the shoes under the foot of the bed, but our bedroom does not have any closets so we have two free-standing wardrobes...his and hers...and there just isn't enough room for very many shoes in the bottom, so I leave out my four pair that I wear most often.  Deal with it!  LOL
 

It still needs to have the excess trimmed off, the binding attached, a label added to the back and then washed.  Once washed the blue lines will wash out and all you'll see is the quilting design.  This thing is HUGE!  I guess I really didn't need to add 4" to both sides to make it wide enough...LOL.  My bad!  I think it will easily fit a king-size bed, now.

When the binding, etc., is all done, I'll post pictures again and show the back at that time, too.

The next quilt to go into the frame will be the one for my nephew and his wife...the sunflower quilt.

I still need to add the three borders to the top, but this is the center of the quilt.  Any suggestions as to what design to use in the quilting? 


Loretta

More Quilt News...

Quote for the Day:

"Her needlework both plain and ornamental was excellent, 

and she might have put a sewing machine to shame."  

~James Edward Austen-Leigh, about Jane Austen 

I have finished the quilt top for my nephew and his wife...well...it's all done except for the borders...of which there will three!  :)

I haven't spent a lot of time around this particular nephew and his wife so I asked his family for some assistance as to what they like.  You know...the proverbial "they"...meaning, roughly,  "the wife", since that is usually who influences the decorating choices the most.  As for men...most of them believe that things just magically appear in the home.  :)

Anyway...I was told that she likes SUNFLOWERS and has BLUE in several of her rooms...so I went with it...and this is my interpretation of "sunflowers" and "blue" (though I did put a lot of other colors in there so basically it would go with any color she should choose in the future!)

The inner border will be the rust with sunflowers fabric.  The middle border will be one of the blues that is in the quilt.  And the third border will be...a surprise!!!  I would have liked to have found more of the white with sunflowers that is the focus fabric (center of the stars), but haven't found any ANYWHERE!  (If any quilter is reading this and has some in their stash, I'd love to buy it from you.  It is "All Cooped Up" by Moda and is cream with chicken-wire and sunflowers on it.)  

I will put the borders on in a couple weeks.  Right now I need to work on some other sewing as there are pants that need hemmed up for both for Andy & me.  Ahhh...the trials and tribulations of being short.  :)


Here is a close-up of the center star block and you can see the "focus fabrics" better...

This is the book/pattern I used...the pattern is called "Stars Over the Prairie" by Gathering Friends...

I hope I hit the "mark" with this quilt for the young couple.  :)  

After I add the borders, this quilt will get hand quilted...after I finish my whole cloth quilt, that is.  Hand quilting is a slow, tedious process...but I put love in every stitch!  And I hope that for the recipients, it is worth the wait.  :)

Here's a video of my grandson, Andrew, that my daughter-in-law sent me.  Is he not the cutest thing, or what???  (BTW...notice the picture on the wall above the sofa...my son painted it...he got his artistic talent from my mother...it seemed to have skipped a generation!  LOL)

 Andrew's new quirk

We will be getting to see both kids and grandkids this coming weekend to celebrate Andrew's third birthday!  Color me EXCITED!!!!   YAY!!!   

I am so proud of both my kids and just love them, their spouses/partners and my grandkids so much!  A prouder mother and grandmother you will never find!  :)

Loretta

I'm Still Here...

Quote for the Day:

The optimist is the kind of person that believes that 

a housefly is looking for a way out.
-George Jean Nathan

This has been an exhausting week...and I'm glad it's the weekend now!  

Just a few things to share with you all today...

Last week I started working on a new quilt for a certain someone whom I've been told likes sunflowers.  :) 


Here are some pictures of the beginning of it...

I've gotten even more done since these were taken, but don't have pictures of the most recent part.   I probably won't take more pictures until I put it all together.  So stay tuned for that!  :D

Every day that I come home from work, there's a "little" more done on the kitchen.  It's slow-going right now because except for the weekends, Andy only has a little time each evening after work to spend on it.

This is what it currently looks like...

As you can see, the insulation is in, the electrical is run for the new outlet in the back splash and Andy has attached boards to the studs to provide additional wall strength for when the cabinets are hung.  


We will be making ANOTHER trip to Home Depot this weekend to pick up some additional tools and items we'll need to get those cabinets hung.   


I did my Walgreens coupon shoppiing today...

I paid $16.30 out-of-pocket (included tax).  I received $3.00 in Register Rewards and also will submit for 2 rebates totaling $18.99.  So I got the above items for free and Walgreens paid me $5.69 to remove them from their store!  :)

When I was in Walgreens I was walking down the main aisle with my coupons and items.  There was a guy walking a little ways behind me and to my left.  When I stopped to look down an aisle, he walked right into my line of vision.  He apologized for getting in my way and said he was looking for his wife who was somewhere in the store "doing the same thing"...nodding to my coupons!  A few minutes later I saw them both again and she had her whole coupon portfolio with her going through it comparing coupons to items!  LOL  Love it!  :)

Andy was given a nice leather jacket yesterday by one of his customers.  It fits him well, but wreaks of cigarette smoke.  I called the dry cleaners and they said it would cost $40 + tax and take four weeks to have it "leather cleaned".   YIKES!!!!

I did a little research online and saw a couple videos and some pictures where people had washed their leather items in the washing machine using shampoo for the wash and conditioner for the rinse cycle with very good results.   Soooooo...the jacket is currently in the washing machine.  :)   I will let you know how it turns out!  :D


We plan on working on the kitchen this weekend and when I'm not helping with that, I'm going to work on the Sunflower Quilt.  In a couple days, hopefully I'll have some progress pictures on both to share with you!


Until then, have a GREAT WEEKEND!  Enjoy the warm weather...and give someone a hug!


Loretta